CASE STUDY "Tanno meets Gemini": environmentally friendly building using local wood and saving energy

Key words:

Objective 2 - Environmental technologies, Technological / market innovation, Energy efficiency, Renewable energies

Region: Programme Type: Funding: Duration:

Steiermark, Austria Innovative Actions, 2000-2006 Total Cost: 363.000, of which 121.000 European Regional Development Fund November 2002 to October 2004

SYNTHESIS The Steiermark region of Austria co-financed the building of a "passive house" which is autonomous in terms of energy supply and is made of local wood and is affordable. Having built the house, the project leaders are now developing further projects in Steiermark and in other countries without European support.

An affordable "passive house" built of local wood The project brought together the actors from two previous projects: Tanno, which was a project based on the use of fir wood in construction, and Gemini, which piloted so called "passive houses" which generate as much energy as they need. The objective of the project was to bring these two competencies together to build an affordable house, i.e., at the same cost or less than that of a "normal" house. The partners for the project were an architecture firm and a building company.

Solar energy combined with maximum insulation The house uses solar panels on the roof to generate energy and to ensure the snow slides away. The walls are constructed with local wood, using innovative techniques to maximise insulation. Innovative air conditioning is based on a pipe which runs under the ground which cools the air in summer and can be heated in winter.

A market created The pilot house was built under the project and it has been marketed extensively. Without EU support, the company has built seven similar buildings and sold them. The project demonstrated the interest in such environmentally friendly buildings and the fact that a market exists which is now being exploited by the project partners.

I. PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Project objectives Tanno meets Gemini is a pilot house which was built to test the feasibility of houses which are totally autonomous in terms of energy supply ('passive houses'). It is made with local natural products (wood) which are affordable (through standardisation). The house has solar panels, innovative walls (made of fir-tree wood, air and paper) which improve insulation and natural air-conditioning.

The main objectives of the project were: Development and construction of a pilot detached house which is designed to be self-sufficient in energy (a 'passive house'); Particular consideration given to the use of local woods such as fir and acacia for use in construction and facades, floors and wall cladding; Use of an ecologically high grade cellulose insulating material, for which residues from cellulose production were to be used as the raw material; The costs of this pioneering method of construction must be affordable to the general public, i.e., the price of such a house must be equivalent (or less) than that of a house built conventionally; Optimisation of the level of prefabrication and development of a modular building component catalogue as appropriate to the potential high demands of this type of construction; The planned transfer of knowledge from the results should provide all interested parties with a sound basis of data for future developments of their own; Improvement in motivation and qualifications of all staff involved in the project through participation in development and the implementation of an innovative construction concept; Organisation of regional supply chains through the involvement of the regional forestry industry and exclusively Styrian companies.

Description / type of activity The Tanno meets Gemini project involved a mixture of two competences. Tanno was the name of a project based on the use of fir tree in the construction of buildings (it was co financed by the Leader programme in the 1995-1999 period). Together with a network of regional companies, the firm of Herbitschek (a building firm and one of the leading partners of the 'Tanno meets Gemini' project) attempted through the Tanno project to give a fresh impetus to sustainable marketing of the fir tree. Prefabricated houses with a low energy requirement and of a high quality in terms of ecological and technological specification were developed, using local fir wood via a regional network. For these houses, great importance was attached to contemporary design. In the Alps and in central Europe many traditional houses are built in fir wood. Although modern houses are now more often built in stone or concrete, the use of fir still has potential as this resource is available locally and is appreciated by users. Gemini is a project based on new construction methods for houses which generate as much (or more) energy than they need ('passive houses'). It was co-financed by the Objective 5b programme in the 1995-1999 period and also by the Steiermark government and the city of Weiz. These houses were designed by the architect Kaltenegger. Solar panels are used to generate energy; good insulation against heat and cold avoids losing energy; and natural air-conditioning ensures that the air remains at a stable temperature. A pilot house called Gemini was built in Steiermark. It is a cylindrical, detached house / power plant, self-sufficient in energy, which turns on its axis with the sun. Tanno meets Gemini: During the course of this project Tanno and Gemini were brought together with the objective to build a 'passive house' (Gemini) with new materials based on local woods (Tanno). Under 'Tanno meets Gemini', a pilot house was built in Steiermark: (http://www.dike.at/tanno_gemini/fotos/tanno_fotos.htm) Solar panels on the roof are designed to optimise the use of solar energy and to ensure that snow slides away. The energy provided by the panels is higher than the energy needed. It is used to heat the house and the water. The walls (inside and outside walls as well as the structure of the building) are based on wood. The main innovation lies in the outside walls which provide excellent insulation. They are made up of several slices: raw wood for the faade (fronting), solid wood for supporting the structure and carton cellulose and air for the insulation. The whole is about 40 cm wide. The air-conditioning is based on a pipe which is some 10m long and which runs under the ground soil. Through this system, the air in the house is cold but not freezing in the winter and is fresh in the summer. Where the pipe enters the house, there is a system to warm the air if necessary. Then the new air is pumped into the rooms whilst at the same time the old air is pumped out. A side benefit from this system is that there are no radiators on the walls. Such houses can be built at the same price as normal houses but generate several savings (in electricity and heating). Seven similar houses have now been built in

Steiermark and have been sold in the form of 15 flats. In addition, the project holder is developing the project further in Croatia by designing floating houses (on the sea) with the same idea that they should be autonomous in terms of energy supply. The project has arranged several exhibitions and produced brochures. It has also been presented at special housing fairs in other countries. Beneficiaries The beneficiaries were an architectural bureau and a building company which wanted to test a new concept of houses to find new markets, but also to preserve the environment and promote the local economy. The wood industry of the region might be a potential beneficiary if many similar houses are constructed.

II. POLITICAL AND STRATEGIC CONTEXT

Strategic context According to a study carried out in 2001 (by the Joanneum Research Institute), the Steiermark region has a high number of potential innovators (SMEs), but limited funds allocated to innovation. In addition, innovation occurs mainly through the improvement of existing products rather than through new products. In fact, the share of the sales resulting from new products is about one third less than the Austrian average. Therefore the regional authorities try to encourage SMEs to innovate. Wood is a strong sector in Steiermark. There is a wood cluster, the primary objective of which is to increase the use of wood in construction. In this context, the 'Tanno meets Gemini' project fits well with the regional innovation strategy, trying to develop a new product using wood.

Innovation Innovative building techniques: o The main innovation lies in the outside walls of the building (which support the structure of the building) which provide very high insulation. o Construction of houses with local raw materials and local enterprises. Innovative concept: construction of a 'passive house' autonomous in energy. Innovative market: Usually, customers for 'passive houses' are those with high incomes who are ready to pay an additional price for such a house. In the case of 'Tanno meets Gemini', a new market is targeted: people with more modest incomes (the houses should not be more expensive than traditional ones and their functioning should bring economies to their owners in reduced energy costs).

Political support The project benefited from the support from several mayors and the head of the region. This was facilitated by the fact that the project is easy to understand, attractive as in the field of sustainable development and interesting for the citizens as all are concerned by housing issues.

III. IMPLEMENTATION

Programming The Regional Programme of Innovative Actions had as an objective to encourage the generation of innovative ideas (products, services or processes) in SMEs. The best new ideas were then developed further, through the financing of pilot projects. This is what happened with the project 'Tanno meets Gemini'. The project was selected through a call for proposals, with the following selection criteria : Project risk Expertise component and use of technology Effects on the structure on the Steiermark economy and parts of the region Market potential Sustainability Export market development perspectives Effects on the future employment opportunities and improvement in qualifications of the workforce in the Steiermark region Effects on production potential The project was selected because it was an innovative idea in using regional products, regional enterprises in networking and it was environment friendly. It was financed under the measure Development of ideas and implementation which aimed at developing and implementing new ideas for products, services and processes. The project leaders (Firma Herbitschek GmbH - a building company - and Architekt Kaltenegger - an architecture bureau) already had experience in innovative buildings (Tanno and Gemini). From the Gemini project, the innovation was that the house turns during the day to benefit from the best exposure to the sun. However, such houses cost 1,000,000 each so that they were too expensive. The partners therefore aimed to develop similar houses (based on the idea that they should be autonomous in terms of energy), but which would be affordable. From the Tanno project, the innovation was the use of local wood in the construction of houses.

Management structure quality and effectiveness The management structure was an association (ARGE, Arbeits Gemeinschaft) made up of the two main partners: Firma Herbitschek GmbH and Architekt Kaltenegger. The partners worked well together as they already had some experience in building the 'Gemini' house. The house was build in time and on budget; only during the project-phase there were some internal deadline shifts.

Partnership The partners were: Firma Herbitschek GmbH (building firm); Architekt Kaltenegger (architect); Technische Universitt Graz TU Graz), Institut fr Holzbau and Joanneum Research Forschungsgesellschaft (for the design of the innovative materials to be used in the Tanno meets Gemini house); Firma Cellulose Dmmstaffproduktion (for the delivery of raw materials based on wood and paper);

Below is a description of the role that each partner played:

Action
Design of test facility Development of design for energy management Calculation of mechanical and physical parameters Development of wall, ceiling and roof components Investigation of the best insulating materials with regard to building costs and ecological parameters Evaluation and optimisation of greenhouse gases Structural examination of the wall, ceiling and roof components with regard to jointing techniques Optimisation of cost of building components and energy management including house technology Construction of test facility Organisation of publicity campaigns and workshops Associated technical measures

Partner involved
Kaltenegger Kaltenegger, Herbitschek TU Graz Herbitschek, Kaltenegger, TU Graz Herbitschek, Cellulose Dmmstoffproduktion CPH, Joanneum Research Joanneum Research TU Graz, Herbitschek Herbitschek, Kaltenegger Herbitschek Herbitschek, Kaltenegger TU Graz

Marketing As this project is in a field that interests citizens (housing and sustainable development), it benefited from many articles in the national and regional press. A film was even made on the project.

Obstacles in terms of design or implementation The project was implemented by partners who already had some experience in working together in this field, which meant that few obstacles were experienced. This facilitated the design and implementation. The greatest difficulties were in co-ordinating deadlines for the various participants (a large number of institutions). This difficulty was increased by the fact that the building materials were experimental and could hence only be delivered by one company. According to the project leaders "if we were to repeat this project we would include a 'Deadline coordinator' (unfortunately a problem of finance, however)". Transferability: Geographically Now that it has been proven that such houses are indeed autonomous in terms of energy (and hence cheap to run), and that they can be built easily and at affordable prices, the lead partners envisages to sell it on a wider scale. Potentially, the market is very wide. The only adaptation may be in the type of wood to be used (depending on the local wood). Such houses are not dependent on unique characteristics of the region or country. A house built with ecological raw materials, which makes the best possible use of available renewable energies such as the sun, can be used in almost all parts of the world. In autumn 2004 a Swedish delegation visited the project for developing a similar project in Sweden. Building methods The knowledge gained through this project ((a) how to maximise the collection of energy and minimise its loss and (b) what kind of new building materials are best) could be used in any type of building. A catalogue for modular building component has been produced on CD-Rom. In addition, it can also be seen at the homepage of the company. Furthermore the project has been presented in several information events and the Kaltenegger architect office has produced some brochures on the project.

IV. EFFECTIVENESS & SUSTAINABILITY

Effectiveness & impact The objective of the project was to design and build a passive house. This objective has been met as the pilot house is now operational (it is now owned by a family who lives in it). In terms of impact, the project has long-term effects for environment and regional added value because of using regional resources and products. There is already large demand and enough suppliers on the market so that further public intervention is not necessary (it was necessary for the pilot project, but once proved successful, it was felt that the regional actors could develop it further).

Sustainability There is a demand for such houses. Citizens (particularly in Austria) are increasingly concerned to respect the environment and to be embedded in the region they live in by using local materials. In May 2006, seven similar houses (15 flats) had already been built in Steiermark. The ambition of the project leaders is to construct other such houses. Further projects are being developed in Steiermark (Stainz and Weiz) and in Germany (Hamburg) and in Croatia. The future challenges are to find the right market on the right time and to bring the project into a serial production.

V. CONCLUSIONS

Lessons learnt The main lesson learned is that it is possible to build a 'passive house' with local raw materials and at affordable prices.

Critical Success Factors The critical success factor is for the project leaders to have some experience in the field of 'passive houses' and to find the right partners to deliver the raw materials and to construct the house.

CONTACT Firma Herbitschek GmbH Tel.: 0043/3179-23132 Fax: 0043/3173 2358126 E-mail: office@herbitschek.at DI Erwin Kaltenegger DI Erwin Kaltenegger, Ing. Wolfgang Lackner, Herbitschek & Co. A-8162 Passail 390 Tel.: 0043/3179-23132-0 Fax: 0043/3179-23132-4 E-mail: dike@aon.at Website: www.dike.at

Date of this information: 11.05.2006